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Fans of English punk icons the Sex Pistols should temper their expectations when it comes to dreams of a reunion with vocalist Johnny Rotten, the singer says.
News of a tour from the Sex Pistols emerged in 2024 when it was first announced that the band – featuring original members Steve Jones, Paul Cook, and Glen Matlock – were to reunite for a two-night affair to benefit West London’s Bush Hall.
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Instead of Rotten (whose real name is John Lydon) taking on the role of frontman, the group was to feature Frank Carter, who has previously performed as the singer of acts such as Gallows, Pure Love and Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes. As a result, the current version of the band is officially being billed as the ‘Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter.’
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Lydon has not been shy in regard to his opinions of the current lineup, however. Previously, he labelled the reunion tantamount to “karaoke,” while being far more straightforward with his opinions in other interviews.
“When I first heard that the Sex Pistols were touring this year without me it pissed me off,” he told British publication The i Paper. “It annoyed me. I just thought, ‘they’re absolutely going to kill all that was good with the Pistols by eliminating the point and the purpose of it all.’”
Now, Lydon addressed the notion as to whether a reunion with him behind the microphone would be a possibility at some point. However, he told PA (via The Independent) that after his legal disagreements with his bandmates over the usage of songs in the 2022 FX/Disney+ series Pistol, such a dream will remain unrealized for fans.
“Never, not after what I consider their dirty deeds, let them wallow in Walt Disney woke expectations,” he explained. “They’ve killed the content, or done their best to, and turned the whole thing into a rubbish, childishness, and that’s unacceptable.
“Sorry, I’m not going to give a helping hand to this any longer, as far as I am concerned, I am the Pistols, and they’re not.”
In a recent interview, Jones explained that Lydon wasn’t involved in any discussions about the nascent version of the band, conceding there would be no point in attempting to get him to join the band given their recent disagreements.
“I literally haven’t spoken to John since that last tour in 2008,” Jones explained. “I want to be clear, I’ve got nothing bad to say about John. I think he’s great; I love him. We had a great past and I’m just moving on from that. That’s all. It was just no fun anymore.”
The current iteration of the band recently announced a run of North American tour dates, which will launch in Dallas, TX on Sept. 16 and wrap in Los Angeles, CA one month later on Oct. 16.
Sex Pistols Featuring Frank Carter – North American Tour 2025
Sept. 16 – Longhorn Ballroom, Dallas, TXSept. 23 – 9:30 Club, Washington, DCSept. 26 – Fillmore, Philadelphia, PASept. 27 – TBD, Brooklyn, NYSept. 30 – Mtelus, Montreal, QCOct. 1 – History, Toronto, ONOct. 3 – Agora Theatre, Cleveland, OHOct. 4 – Fillmore, Detroit, MIOct. 7 – Fillmore, Minneapolis, MNOct. 10 – Mission Ballroom, Denver, COOct. 13 – Showbox SoDo, Seattle, WAOct. 15 – Warfield, San Francisco, CAOct. 16 – Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA
Billboard Women in Music 2025 The Weeknd added yet another music video to YouTube‘s Billion Views Club, as the “Call Out My Name” visual surpassed the milestone. The achievement marks the star’s sixth music video to surpass one billion views. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In […]
Johnny Tillotson, the Grammy-nominated country and pop singer behind the iconic hit, “Poetry In Motion,” died on Tuesday (April 1). He was 86 years old.
The star’s wife, Nancy, announced the news of his passing via post on Facebook. “It is with a broken heart that I write to let you know that the sweetest, kindest man I ever met Johnny Tillotson, left earth for Heaven yesterday,” she wrote alongside a sweet photo of the duo laughing together. “He was my best beloved, Champion of my realm, Knight of my heart. Someone said that sometimes right in the middle of an ordinary life you get a fairy tale. The day I met him I got mine. He was funny, generous and kind. A gentleman through and through. He loved and was grateful to his fans, as he once said, they made every dream I ever had come true. Once again on his behalf I say thank you for that.”
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She added, “Johnny will be missed every single day for the rest of my life. He was simply the best. With all the love I have in my heart for a wonderful man gone too soon from this world.”
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Tillotson was born in 1939 in Jacksonville, Florida, and was a talented singer since his childhood. He signed to Cadence Records, and issued his first single, “Dreamy Eyes” / “Well I’m Your Man” in September 1958 at just 19 years old.
After releasing a string of singles, Tillotson quickly became a teen idol. His biggest hit came just two years later in the form of 1960’s “Poetry in Motion,” which peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart.
Tillotson’s first Grammy nomination was for his 1962 track, “It Keeps Right on A-Hurtin’,” which was inspired by the terminal illness of his father. The song was nominated for best country and Western recording, and has since been covered by several other artists including Elvis Presley, Margaret Whiting, Slim Whitman and Wanda Jackson. The track peaked at No. 3 on the Hot 100 and No. 4 on the Hot Country Songs chart.
His second Grammy nomination was for his 1965 track, “Heartaches by the Number,” which received a nod for best vocal performance. The song peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and No. 35 on the Hot 100.
Overall, Tillotson was a mainstay on the Billboard charts. He achieved 25 entries and four top 10s on the Hot 100; five hits on Hot Country Songs; two hits on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and nine entries on Adult Contemporary.
Per Nancy’s Facebook post, Tillotson is survived by his wife, his brother Dan, his son John and stepdaughter Genevieve as well as his grandchildren, nieces and nephews.
Billboard Women in Music 2025 Rubi Rose sat down with Bobbi Althoff’s The Really Good Podcast and made a shocking revelation. Rose — who models and sometimes raps — claimed that she makes around $400,000 in a “horrible month” on OnlyFans, and she does it by doing whatever her subscribers want her do, whether that […]
Billboard Women in Music 2025
Welcome to Billboard Pro’s Trending Up newsletter, where we take a closer look at the songs, artists, curiosities and trends that have caught the music industry’s attention. Some have come out of nowhere, others have taken months to catch on, and all of them could become ubiquitous in the blink of a TikTok clip.
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This week: An Amazon Prime season finale makes a 2020s streaming hit out of a 2010s alt-rock anthem, while Randy Travis’ eternal love song keeps on burning and Snoh Aalegra scores a long-overdue viral breakout.
‘Shine’ Bright: Mondo Cozmo Soars With ‘Reacher’ Synch
“Everything will be alright/ If you let it go,” Josh Ostrander, the singer-songwriter who records under the name Mondo Cozmo, sings on the chorus to his alt-folk anthem “Shine.” Released on his 2017 album Plastic Soul, “Shine” was a minor hit for Mondo Cozmo, climbing to the top of the Adult Alternative Songs airplay chart eight years ago; now, the track has resurfaced in a major way, after it was featured in the season 3 finale of the Amazon Prime Video smash Reacher, which was unveiled on Thursday (Mar. 27).
“Shine” earned 116,000 official on-demand U.S. streams in the first four days that the season finale was available(Mar. 27-30) — more than 1000% the total of the same four-day period during the previous week (9,900 streams from Mar. 23-26), according to Luminate. Meanwhile, “Shine” went from a negligible amount of sales during the previous the week to 2,400 downloads from Mar. 27-30, and nearly a week after the finale was released, the single remains the most-Shazamed song in the country. Even if “Shine” doesn’t receive a revival on the scale of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill,” if the song’s streaming and sales total keeps pushing upward, Mondo Cozmo could make a return to the Billboard charts. – JASON LIPSHUTZ
“Forever and Ever,” Again – Randy Travis Country Classic Becomes Streaming-Era Hit
First released in 1987, “Forever and Ever, Amen” became not only a Country Songs-topping smash for Randy Travis, but an enduring standard and a signature song. While the song has never remained far from pop culture (and the country world in particular), in the past month it has taken on new life, both as the title of Travis’ recently announced upcoming biopic, and as the source of an emotional Carrie Underwood cover – both of which were revealed at the Grand Ole Opry last month, to very positive reception.
These new boosts, combined with the song’s lingering virality, have resulted in “Forever and Ever Amen” growing into a sizable streaming hit over the course of March. While the song was already racking up 1.8 million official on-demand U.S. streams for the final tracking week of February (ending Feb. 27), in the four weeks since that number has nearly doubled, as “Forever” amassed 3.5 million for the week ending March 27 – while the song’s digital sales have also exploded 565% for the same time period, to over 1,200.
If the song keeps growing, it could become a chart hit all over again – proving that the song really is as eternal as its title implies. – ANDREW UNTEREBRGER
Snoh Aalegra’s Has Her “Eyes” on TikTok Four Years After Song’s Release
Snoh Aalegra has been an R&B darling for years now, but “In Your Eyes” could land her a legitimate hit single. The groovy Neptunes-produced single is a deep cut from the Swedish singer’s 2021 Temporary Highs in the Violet Skies LP, which earned a best R&B album Grammy nod and peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200.
According to Luminate, streaming activity for “Eyes” has exploded nearly 540% over the next four weeks. Across the first few months of the year, the song naturally gained traction simply because users were discovering and vibing with it. On March 9, user @ruscowski11 posted a dance clip to “Eyes,” quickly kicking off a dance trend that spread to several different corners of the app. During the week of March 7-13, “Eyes” pulled 607,000 official on-demand U.S. streams, posting a 72% increase from the week prior, according to Luminate. In the first full week post-dance video (March 14-20), streams jumped a further 73%, topping out at 1.05 million streams. Last week (March 21-27), “Eyes” leapt another 51%, earning 1.59 million streams. The official “In Your Eyes” TikTok sound currently boasts over 62,000 clips on the platform.
Between Ravyn Lenae and Janet Jackson scoring viral TikTok hits in recent weeks, it looks like Snoh Aalegra is the latest to ride the app’s R&B wave. – KYLE DENIS
New Lingo, New Viral Track: Rob49 Scores Big With “WTHelly”
When Rob49 dropped “WTHelly” on March 21, the song earned 339,000 official on-demand U.S. streams in its first weekend of release (March 21-24). The following weekend (March 28-31), streaming activity for the song catapulted 373% to over 1.6 million streams.
The impetus? TikTok of course! Over the past week, Ro49’s new single has completely taken over the app, with users sharing their shock and amusement at the song’s outro. “What the helly?/ What the hellyanté?/ What the helly on?/ What the helly, Berry?/ What the helly, Burton?/ What the helly, ‘Bron James?/ What the helly Cyrus?” he spits, making a seemingly everlasting pun out of the phrase “what the helly,” a NOLA-steeped take on the more universal “What the Hell.” On TikTok, the song’s official sound has already earned a whopping 87,5000 clips, including several posts like Wiz Khalifa and Love Island star Leah Kateb.
With hits like “Wassam Baby” and “Trippin on a Yacht” already in the tuck, Rob49 is an eyeing another one with “WTHelly” — which has recently earned a Justin Bieber co-sign. – KD
Billboard Women in Music 2025
At this year’s Billboard Women in Music event, the Impact Award was presented by Bose, with music star Tyla as the recipient. The South African singer and songwriter was honored for her profound influence on the music industry, particularly for her role in spreading amapiano to global audiences.
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The “Water” singer’s recognition at the event followed the footsteps of previous Impact Award honorees such as Solange Knowles, Alicia Keys, Jessie Reyez, H.E.R., Becky G and Young Miko.
When accepting the award, she said, “In life, we all have a chance to pour into one another, whether it be something you say, a performance, a dance move — literally anything. We all have that chance, and you never know what might ignite in somebody and what that person will pass on to another.”
During the ceremony, Tyla also wowed the crowd with a live performance of her hit single “Push 2 Start.” The track has seen massive success, having topped the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart for an impressive 14 weeks. It also reached No. 2 on the World Digital Song Sales chart, further solidifying her position as one of the most exciting emerging artists in the international music scene.
In addition to Tyla’s celebration, the event also saw singer-songwriter Griff catch the attention of attendees as she wore a custom pair of Bose Ultra Open Earbuds designed by renowned jeweler Maggi Simpkins. Last year, Simpkins crafted a similar pair for Kenzie Ziegler, and this year, Griff’s earbuds were created with 14k solid yellow gold and a mix of natural and lab-grown diamonds totaling 2.18 carats. These pieces reflected the unique artistry of both Simpkins and Bose’s commitment to blending technology with style.
Griff took a moment on the red carpet to speak with Billboard News’ Rania Aniftos and social media personality Jazzy about her music and the custom earbuds, shedding light on her career and the creative process behind her sound.
As Tyla and Griff continue to make their mark on the industry, this year’s Billboard Women in Music ceremony highlighted the ever-growing influence of young female artists, the continued rise of amapiano, and the way music continues to serve as a vehicle for change and connection across the globe.
Billboard Women in Music 2025
Kid Capri is claiming he was never compensated for his alleged contribution to the Martin theme song, which he says uses his voice as a sample.
In an interview with the Bag Fuel podcast on Tuesday (April 1), Capri said the popular sitcom’s theme song, which was composed by Steve Keitt, used a sample of Capri’s voice from his time on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam. Capri said that his signature “Martin!” catchphrase was pulled without his permission.
“They took my voice from Def Comedy Jam, sampled it, put it on the Martin show,” Capri explained. “Never got no permission from me, never asked for my rights, nothing. This show been on eight different networks for 30 years. Now if it was a money thing for me, I would been like, ‘Yo where’s my bread?’ I ain’t never did that.”
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He went on to say that before the show’s reunion, Tisha Campbell, who played Martin Lawrence’s wife Gina Waters-Payne, went on Fox Soul and inquired about whether that was Kid Capri‘s voice heard on the iconic intro. But Martin himself denied that was Kid’s voice during his own appearance on the show.
“First of all, that was the dumbest s—t to say, everybody know it’s me,” Capri continued. “Number two, I got videos of this. Number three, all you had to say was, ‘Yo Kid, we used your s—t, is it aight? Here’s a bag.’ Or not.”
Capri added he hasn’t spoken to Martin about the matter, and that he has no plans to talk to the Bad Boys actor.
Regardless of whether the audio was lifted from Def Comedy Jam, it’s unclear whether Capri would have even needed to give legal permission in the first place, as HBO or one of the production companies behind Def Comedy Jam are likely the owner of the copyrights to the material that was sampled.
Billboard has reached out to Steve Keitt and Martin Lawrence’s team for comment.
The claim comes after Kid Capri made headlines last summer for criticizing Travis Scott over his interaction with a fan who wanted a photo. In a video of the incident, Scott appeared to push the fan’s arm out of the way, while saying, “Don’t touch me.”
“Ayo, Travis Scott, when did we start being disrespectful to kids, bruh?” Capri said after the video went viral. “Little kid asked you for an autograph, [you] pushed his hand away, looked at him like he was the devil and just walked away from him. At one time, you would’ve wanted somebody to ask you for an autograph or ask you for a picture or whatever it is he asked you for.”
Watch the full interview below.
Billboard Women in Music 2025
The calendar has turned to April. With quarter 1 of 2025 officially in the rear view, which was a busy three months in the hip-hop world, Billboard Unfiltered is back with a new episode on Wednesday (April 2).
The trio is joined by Hot 97 and proud Duke University hater Peter Rosenberg for the discussion, which touches on Drake’s “NOKIA” video and what it means for Kendrick Lamar, Mustard’s comeback, Ye’s interview with DJ Akademiks and more.
Directed by Theo Skudra and shot in IMAX, “Nokia” arrived on Monday in black-and-white, and some fans perceived certain scenes to be jabs at Lamar.
“I saw connections people were drawing, and it felt like a reach,” Rosenberg said. “It wasn’t enough to warrant major conversation to me.”
Rosenberg thinks Drake should continue to dish out the hits and shy away from the Kendrick Lamar snipes. “If I’m Drake, I’m probably staying away from the Kendrick stuff,” he said. “And focusing on this. No matter what people say about this man, the hits are coming. Drake is fully back on the Hot 100.”
The Hot 97 radio host called Mustard’s hot streak one of the “greatest comebacks” in music history after the producer helmed “Not Like Us” and then hit the stage at the Grammy Awards, as well as Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX halftime show.
“That comeback to producer of the year to onstage at the Grammys to at the Super Bowl,” he said. “That may be one of the greatest music comebacks of all time. And It’s not really being talked about.”
Ye sat down with DJ Akademiks for an explosive interview last week, which saw him double-down on his hate for Jay-Z following his flagrant tweet about Jay’s twins, Sir and Rumi.
“There’s so no coming back from where he’s going,” Rosenberg said. “There’s no response at this point to Ye that I would think is inappropriate.”
Hot 97’s Summer Jam is back in 2025 with A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Gunna, GloRilla and more performing. While the event has moved indoors to Prudential Center, Rosenberg reflects on how the festival has transformed from its heyday in the ’90s to now.
“What I’m not gonna do is get up here and say, ‘Summer Jam’s the same as its ever been.’ It’s definitely not the same and it’s not coming back,” he added. “But I’m not gonna get up here and say it’s not a good time. … It’s not 2001, it’s not Michael Jackson with Jay-Z.”
Watch the full episode below.
Billboard Women in Music 2025 HAIM’s next single is coming soon. The group unveiled the cover art for “Everybody’s Trying to Figure Me Out,” the next song off their upcoming album. In the photo, lead singer Danielle leans against a black SUV with her eyes closed, soaking in the sun. The snap is a reference […]
Billboard Women in Music 2025
The Contenders is a midweek column that looks at artists aiming for the top of the Billboard charts, and the strategies behind their efforts. This week, for the upcoming Billboard 200 dated April 12, we look at a number of albums looking to knock Playboi Carti’s two-week No. 1 from the top spot – led by a reissue from one of the 2024’s top pop stars.
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Ariana Grande, Eternal Sunshine (Republic): Ariana Grande’s sixth studio album is an already-certified hit: Eternal Sunshine debuted atop the Billboard 200 upon its release in March 2024, with over 200,000 first-week equivalent album units, according to Luminate, and spawned a pair of Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits with advance single “Yes, And?” and Sunshine focus track “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love).” The album has stuck on the 200 for the last 55 weeks, still rating in the chart’s top half as of this frame.
Next week, however, it should make a large jump – possibly to the very top spot. On Friday (March 28), Grande released the album’s Brighter Days Ahead deluxe edition, which added six bonus songs to the streaming version of the 13-track release: one extended version of the album-opening “Intro (End of the World)” and five totally new songs. Those previously unreleased songs have been performing well on streaming, with “Twilight Zone” even topping Spotify’s Daily Top Songs USA chart for the Friday of its release, and all six cuts still rating in the top half of the 200-position chart.
In addition, Grande has released a multitude of versions of the album for sale. Her webstore offers exclusive digital downloads of the 19-track Brighter Days Ahead reissue of the album, one with just that tracklist, one with the instrumentals of each track and one also with the a cappellas of each track (and all with alternate covers). Physical vinyl and CD variants are also available of the new edition, which include the three bonus tracks originally collected on the set’s (Slightly Deluxe) 2024 reissue. Grande has released a short film to promote the set, an emotional 26-minute mini-sci-fi flick also called Brighter Days Ahead.
Will it be enough to top Playboi Carti’s reigning No. 1, the streaming behemoth Music? It could come down to the wire, with Carti’s dominance on DSPs competing with Grande’s robust sales – and the race might not be over yet on either side.
Nav, OMW2 Rexdale (XO/Republic): Canadian rapper-singer Nav might not still be the regularly charting hitmaker he was at the turn of the 2020s, but his albums are still pretty well guaranteed to make an impact on the Billboard 200 – where he has two No. 1 sets to his name, and has charted in the top 10 with each of his last five sets. He’ll look to keep that streak alive with this week’s OMW2 Rexdale (or On My Way 2 Rexdale), which includes a number of big-name guests – including Metro Boomin, Don Toliver and the Billboard 200’s reigning champ Playboi Carti.
To do that, he’ll have the help of a number of physical variants, including standard and signed CDs, vinyl and four deluxe boxed sets containing the standard CD and branded clothing. In addition, Nav is offering a sextet of digital albums as exclusives through his webstore, each of with comes with the core 11-song set and a consistent trio of bonus tracks — and then three additional bonus tracks, which are different on each edition. (He’s also done in-store signings at brick-and-mortar retailers to help promote the new set.)
Without a major streaming hit to its credit, it all might not be enough for Rexdale to compete for No. 1 with Grande and Carti – but it should be enough for yet another Nav top 10, at the least.
Lil Durk, Deep Thoughts (Only the Family/Alamo/Sony): Deep Thoughts marks star rapper Lil Durk’s first full release since being arrested on murder-for-hire charges in late 2024. (He has pled not guilty and is currently awaiting trial.) While Durk is obviously not the dominant chart force he was earlier in the decade, Thoughts has unsurprisingly gotten off to a strong start on streaming, with its 17 tracks (including guest appearances from Future, Lil Baby and Jhené Aiko) all still ranking in the top 100 of Apple Music’s real-time chart. Streaming will have to make the great majority of Durk’s chart performance, however, since Deep Thoughts is currently only available to purchase as a digital download.
Mumford and Sons, Rushmere (Glassnote): Each of the three albums alt-folkers Mumford and Sons released in the 2010s went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 – most recently 2018’s Delta, the group’s most recent LP until last Friday. That was when the stomp-clappers released Rushmere, a 10-track set co-produced with country and Americana stalwart Dave Cobb, along with six vinyl variants, four CD editions and a cassette. The set’s title track has proven a top-five hit at rock radio, but the streaming response has thus far been muted – and though the band sells respectably, their blockbuster commercial peak is largely in the rearview at this point.
